Ontario International Airport (ONT) recently celebrated having its 30,000,000th passenger since local control began on November 1st, 2016. Although the airport was born in 1923 as Latimer Field – the airport has become both a freight hub and an international airport that is serving as an independent alternative to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) with two 150-foot wide runways – one 12,197 feet long while the other is 10,200 feet long.

The milestone also showcases ONT’s mission, which according to its website, is “Connecting people, places and opportunities to build a better world.”

The big milestone

For the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA) President Alan Wapner, the move marks the impact the airport and airport authority has made. As Wapner told Spectrum News 1;

"It's not about the number — 30 million passengers. It's about 30 million lives being impacted. That's 30 million people meeting up with their families. It's 30 million travelers who are contributing to the local economy, creating thousands of jobs for folks out here. That's what this milestone really means."

As per the below tweet, the celebration was to honor “our epic community”:

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The 30,000,000th passenger

The 30,000,000th passenger for the Ontario International Airport Authority happened to be Jessica Burchett, who happened to be taking a Southwest Airlines flight (WN 3411) to a child’s sporting tournament in Minnesota via a Denver connection. Burchett won round-trip free tickets from Southwest. For Burchett, according to an airport statement, the closeness of ONT and the Southwest tickets are helpful,

“It's super convenient. It's a few miles from the house. It's easy to get in and out of. It's my favorite airport. I travel so much for my kids sports that this is a money saver and it's phenomenal.”

For Southwest Airlines according to Ontario Station Manager Jesse Perez, Southwest Airlines is “Thankful for this 38-year partnership with Ontario International” to provide airline services from ONT.

Ontario International Airport outperforming pre-pandemic

Ontario International Airport has been outperforming its pre-pandemic passenger numbers. In 2022, more than 5.7 million airline travelers passed through, a nearly 3% increase from 2019 and the highest passenger volume since 2008. This is after 4.5 million did in 2021, a year of recovery after the COVID-19 airborne pandemic.

Furthermore, according to the Federal Aviation Administration Airport Data and Information Portal, the airport has 73,677 operations annually. In a March 15th, 2023 statement, the airport noted a 12.75% growth in passengers, comparing February 2023's 391,248 versus February 2022.

The statement also noted that according to the industry trade association Airlines for America, ONT is 4th among medium to large-size airports in the continental US - the only airport in California to enjoy these statistics.

This is before the March 26th return of China Airlines to ONT to provide a daily connection to Taoyuan International Airport in Taipei. The COVID-19 pandemic stopped this unique connection.

Have you flown out of Ontario International Airport? Please share your experiences in the comments.